Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TITLE
CORNER REINFORCEMENT
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field Of The invention
This invention patent relates to a packaging system. More particularly, this
invention relates to a means for reinforcing packaging corners that allows for
some
misalignment of vertically stacked packaging units without the bottom
packaging unit
collapsing or having a corner be crushed or fall inward.
Description Of The Related Art
Articles such as outside air conditioners and large household appliances
(washers,
dryers, ranges, etc.) are often packaged and shipped in packaging units in
which the
article rests on a transport base and is enclosed by a box or carton, and in
which vertical
support posts are inserted between the article and the carton. The support
posts are
generally located adjacent the four interior corners of the carton (and thus
are often
referred to as corner posts) and typically extend from the transport base to
the top of the
carton. The posts not only protect the article from lateral impact forces but
also provide
axial (vertical) stacking strength. The forces applied to stacked packaging
units can be
substantial. For example, the force applied to the bottom unit in a stack of
six 240 pound
2 0 units is about 1200 pounds force. Loads placed on top of the packaging
unit are borne
primarily by the support posts and not by the packaged article.
When packaging units are not stacked in perfect vertical alignment (a
phenomenon referred to as "off-stacking"), the corner posts bearing the brunt
of the off-
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stacked load are more likely to fail (buckle) due to a less than optimal
distribution of the
load (stacking weight) on the corner post walls. At best, off-stacking can
result in a slight
crimping of the carton corner. At worst, off-stacking can result in the
collapse of stacked
units, damage to the packaged articles, and possible injury.
Thus it is an object of the present invention to provide a packaging system
having
reinforced corners that help spread the load to accommodate a certain amount
of off-
stacking.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a packaging system
having
reinforced corners that help prevent product damage and risk to personnel.
1 0 Still another object of the present invention is to provide a
corner reinforcement
that is made from a folded paper blank and has integrally formed strengthening
ribs.
Further and additional objects will appear from the description, accompanying
drawings, and appended claims.
Plastic corner post caps are known, but these caps are designed either to help
secure smaller packaged articles in an cube type array, such as in U.S. Patent
No.
4,292,901; or to help register (vertically align) a unit stacked on top, such
as in U.S.
Patent Nos. 4,366,905 and 4,491,076. In any event, unlike the present
invention, none of
these prior art corner posts caps are made from a folded paper blank or are
designed to be
used with a cardboard carton.
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BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is a corner reinforcement for a packaging unit to allow
increased off-stacking. The packaging unit generally comprises a base upon
which a
packaged article rests, a cardboard box or carton enclosing the article, and
corner posts
inserted between the packaged article and the carton. The corner posts are
located
adjacent the four interior corners of the carton and extend from the base to
the top of the
carton. A corner reinforcement is placed on top of each corner post in order
to better
distribute any load placed on top of the unit, thereby preventing corner
sagging or, worse,
stack failures.
Each corner reinforcement comprises a top panel that covers the top end of the
corner post and two side panels that extend downwardly from the top panel and
are
inserted between the packaged article and the carton.
Each corner reinforcement is made from a folded rectangular paper blank which
comprises parallel opposing side edges and parallel top and bottom edges.
Lateral fold
lines divide the blank into two or more equal sections. Each section is
further divided
into a top half and a bottom half of substantially equal dimensions by a
second lateral fold
line. Each top half has further fold lines; preferably the bottom half does
not.
Each top half comprises a triangular top panel and two substantially
triangular
side panels hingedly attached to the top panel along diagonal fold lines. The
top panel is
2 0 defined by a second lateral fold line and the two diagonal fold lines
and is shaped like a
right triangle.
To make the corner reinforcement the blank is folded in "rolling fashion"
along
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the lateral fold lines to obtain a multi-layered rectangle having dimensions
substantially
equal to one of the halves. The rectangle is then folded downward at the two
diagonal
fold lines until each side panel is oriented at right angles to the top panel.
The absence of
fold lines, perforations, score lines or creases in the bottom halves causes
the six-layered
rectangle to slightly resist folding but results in a stronger, more effective
corner
reinforcement.
Glue or other adhesive may be applied to the blank before or during folding to
join the various layers together. Ribs may be formed in the top panel to add
strength to
the corner reinforcement. Preferably the ribs run parallel to the machine
direction of the
paper.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure 1 is an exploded view of a packaging system, including corner
reinforcements made according to the present invention.
Figure 2 is a perspective view of a conventional corner post.
5 Figure 3 is a perspective top view of a corner reinforcement made
according to the
present invention.
Figure 4 is a perspective bottom view of the corner reinforcement of Figure 3.
Figure 5 is a top plan view of a blank used to make the corner reinforcement
of
Figure 3.
Figure 6 is a front plan view of a corner reinforcement made according to the
present invention shown installed.
Figure 7 is a perspective and partial cutaway view of a corner reinforcement
made
according to the present invention shown installed.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
While this invention may be embodied in many forms, there is shown in the
drawings and will herein be described in detail one or more embodiments with
the
understanding that this disclosure is to be considered an exemplification of
the principles
of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the illustrated
embodiments.
The Packaging I Jnit
Turning to the drawings, there is shown in Figure 1 an exploded view of a
packaging unit 10 incorporating the corner reinforcements 40 of the present
invention.
The packaging unit 10 generally comprises a base 12 upon which a packaged
article 14
rests, a cardboard box or carton 16 enclosing the article 14 on four sides,
and corner posts
18 inserted between the packaged article 14 and the carton 16. The corner
posts 18 are
located adjacent the four interior corners of the carton 16 and extend from
the base 12 to
the top of the carton 16. The corner posts 18 protect the article 14 from
lateral impact
forces and provide axial (vertical) stacking strength for the entire unit 10.
Loads placed
on top of the packaged article 10 primarily are borne by the corner posts 18.
Other
packaging elements can be included as part of the overall unit 10, including
but not
limited to lateral (horizontal) support posts and foam inserts. Plastic
overwrapping may
be used either in addition to the cardboard carton (to wrap the article) or as
a substitute
for the cardboard carton (as stretch wrap).
2 0 The article 14 to be packaged can be any large article, such as the
air conditioning
unit depicted in Figure 1, a washer, dryer, dishwasher or other large
household appliance.
The article 14 typically rests on the transport base 12 during manufacture as
it moves
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down an assembly line. The assembled unit 10 may be placed on a shipping
pallet (not
shown) to enable the unit 10 to be moved by fork lift truck or other means.
The Corner Posts
Figure 2 is a perspective view of one of the corner posts 18. Each corner post
18
may be made from a single sheet of paper or paperboard convolutely wound
several times
into a hollow tube having a circular cross-section and then reshaped into the
modified L-
shape shown in the figure (or any other desired shape). This L-shape enables
the corner
post 18 to fit snugly around the corners of the article 14 between the article
14 and the
carton 14. The "L" shape also enhances structural strength both axially
(vertically) and
1 0 laterally (horizontally).
Each corner post 18 has a top end and a bottom end (that rests on the base 12)
and
comprises two legs 20 oriented substantially perpendicular to each other and
terminating
in rounded ends 24. The legs 20 are formed by an inner wall 28 (defined as the
wall
closest to the article 14) and an outer wall 30 (defined as the wall closest
to the carton 16)
1 5 in generally parallel spaced relation to each other to form a hollow
core. Inwardly
extending beads or grooves 32 may be formed in the outer wall 30 along each
leg 20 at an
area spaced from the rounded ends 24. The beads 32 extend the entire vertical
length of
the outer wall 30 and may contact the inner wall 28 along their apex. When
installed, the
corner posts 18 are wedged between the article 14 and the carton 16 with the
outer wall
2 0 30 facing and abutting two perpendicular sides of the carton 16 and the
inner wall 28
facing the article 14.
The Corner Reinforcements
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In a key aspect of the invention, folded paper corner reinforcements 40 are
placed
over the top ends of the corner posts 18 to help spread any loads placed on
top of the unit
across the entire top surface of the corner posts 18, thereby helping to
prevent the
posts 18 and/or packaging unit 10 from buckling, crushing or otherwise
failing, even
5 when stacked units 10 are misaligned (off-stacked).
Figures 3 and 4 are top and bottom perspective views respectively of a corner
reinforcement 40 according to the invention. Each corner reinforcement 40 is
made from
a folded paper blank 60 described in more detail below, and comprises a
substantially
flat, triangular, load bearing, top panel 42 large enough to cover at least
the top end of a
10 corner post 14. The periphery or outer edge 44 of the top panel 42
defines a right
triangle, and more preferably an isosceles right triangle having two
orthogonal side edges
46 of equal length and a front or diagonal edge 48 that forms the hypotenuse
of the right
triangle.
Preferably one or more ribs 50 are formed in the top panel 42 parallel to the
front
edge 48. Preferably the rib 50 located farthest from the front edge 48
impinges on (abuts)
the corner post 18 and, more specifically, the rounded ends 24 of the corner
post legs 20,
to help position and stabilize the corner reinforcement 40 so that it does not
move with
respect to the corner post 18.
Each corner reinforcement 40 further comprises a two side panels 52 hingedly
or
2 0 foldably connected to the top panel 42 along the side edges 46 and
extending downward
therefrom at substantially right angles to the top panel 42. Each side panel
52 is
substantially triangular and terminates in an apex 54.
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The Blank
The corner reinforcement 40 is made from a rectangular blank 60 such as the
one
shown in Figure 5. As viewed in Figure 5, the blank 60 has parallel opposing
side edges
64 and top and bottom edges 66, and is divided into three equal sections, or
thirds 68, by
two parallel lateral fold lines 69. Each section 68 is further divided by a
second lateral
fold line 70 into a top half 75 and a bottom half 76 of equal dimensions. Each
top half 75
has further fold lines as described below; preferably the bottom half 76 does
not.
Substantially triangular notches 72 are formed along the top and bottom edges
66
of the blank 60 equidistant from the side edges 64, and diamond shaped notches
74 are
formed along the first lateral fold lines 69 equidistant from the side edges
64 to facilitate
folding the blank 60 into a corner reinforcement 40 as explained further
below.
Each top half 75 comprises a triangular top panel 42 and two side panels 52
separated by diagonal fold lines 71. The diagonal fold lines 71 run (extend)
from the
triangular notch 72 or from the diamond shaped notch 74 to the ends 73 of the
second
fold lines 70 and are substantially perpendicular to each other.
Thus each top half 75 comprises a top panel 42 and two side panels 52. The top
panel 42 is shaped like a right triangle and is defined by a second lateral
fold line 70 and
two diagonal fold lines 71. Each side panel 52 is hingedly attached to the top
panel 42
along a diagonal fold line 71.
Each bottom half 76 is foldably connected to a top half 75 and, more
specifically,
to a top panel 42 along a second lateral fold line 70. As explained in the
next section the
bottom halves 76 preferably do not have fold lines, perforations or score
lines, which
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provides for a stronger corner reinforcement 40.
The blank 60 does not include the integrally formed ribs 50; these are formed
later.
Making the Comer Reinforcement
5 To make a corner reinforcement 40, the blank 60 is folded in
"rolling fashion"
(not "accordion fashion") along the first and second fold lines, 69, 70. For
example, with
reference to Figure 5, the bottommost half 76 of the blank 60 is folded under
at the
second lateral fold line 70a and then folded under again at the first lateral
fold line 69a,
continuing in this manner until the blank 60 is folded into a six layered
rectangle one
1 0 sixth the size of the original blank 60.
The six layered rectangle comprises a top panel 42 and two side panels 52
separated by two diagonal fold lines 71. The rectangle is then folded downward
at the
two diagonal fold lines 71 until each side panel 52 is oriented at right
angles to the top
panel 42 with its apex 54 pointing downward as shown in Figure 3. The absence
of fold
lines, perforations, score lines or creases in the bottom halves 76 causes the
six-layered
rectangle to slightly resist folding but results in a stronger, more effective
comer
reinforcement 40.
Glue or other adhesive may be applied to the blank before or during folding to
join the various layers together. Although a six-layer corner reinforcement 40
is shown in
2 0 the figures, the corner reinforcement can be made with fewer or more
layers by changing
the number of sections 68 in the blank 60.
The ribs 50 may be formed in the top panel 42 in any suitable manner, such as
by
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clamping or pressing, to add strength to the corner reinforcement 40.
Preferably the ribs
50 run parallel to the machine direction of the paper. (The machine direction
is the
direction in which the greater number of sheet fibers tend to be oriented as a
result of the
forward motion of the papermaking machine wire.)
Assembling the Package and Using the Corner Reinforcements
The packaging unit 10 shown in Figure 1 may be assembled in the following
manner. First, the article 14 is placed on the base 12, typically as the
article 14 moves
along a manufacturing assembly line. Once the article itself is fully
assembled and ready
for shipping, the carton 16 is placed over the article 14 and the base 12. The
corner posts
18 are then inserted adjacent the inside corners of the carton 16 between the
carton 16 and
the article 14. A corner reinforcement 40 may then be placed over each corner
post 18
with each side panel 52 inserted or wedged between the article 14 and a side
of the carton
16 as shown in Figures 6 and 7. The top panel 42 should rest on and cover the
top end of
the corner post 18. The pointed triangular shape of the side panels 52 helps
guide the
corner reinforcement into place.
When the corner reinforcement 40 is installed and the carton 16 closed, the
top
panel 42 of each corner reinforcement 40 should be flush with the top of the
carton 16 so
that any load placed on top of the unit 10 will be transmitted through the
corner
reinforcements 40 to the corner posts 18.
***
Thus there has been described a packaging unit 10 that can be stored and moved
in stacked arrays. In a key aspect of the invention corner reinforcements 40
are placed on
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top of the corner posts 18 to distribute the load from units 10 stacked on top
over the
entire end wall surface of the corner posts 18 to prevent the posts 18 from
buckling and
the corners of the packaged units from falling inward. The corner
reinforcements 40 help
protect the unit 10 from failure even when units are off-stacked by spreading
the load in
corners of the package that are not normally supported.
It is expected that the corner reinforcements could fit on the outside of the
carton.
It is also expected that the corner reinforcements could be pre-attached to
the carton or
could be attached to an insert to allow for all four corner reinforcements to
be installed at
the same time. Finally, it is expected that the corner reinforcements could be
fitted onto
the bottom ends of the corner posts.
It is understood that the embodiments of the invention described above are
only
particular examples which serve to illustrate the principles of the invention.
Modifications and alternative embodiments of the invention are contemplated
which do
not depart from the scope of the invention as defined by the foregoing
teachings and
appended claims. It is intended that the claims cover all such modifications
and
alternative embodiments that fall within their scope.
